An oncologist's perspective on measuring success in the clinic

Raja Flores says oncology is loose with staging jargon, and now “it’s confusing my patients.”

In last week’s issue of The Cancer Letter, Raja Flores wrote a guest editorial explaining how he, with his expertise in thoracic surgery, took issue with a nuance in a recent Keytruda commercial.

August 19, 2026

Guest Editorial

I grew up unhoused. Now, with support from ACS, I am an MD-PhD student focused on oncology
My mother instilled in me: “Never become a product of your circumstances.”

My high school experience revolved around constantly worrying about my four younger siblings and mom amidst our normal condition—instability.

From “default dead” to living the future of cancer care
As founding CEO of GitLab, I went “founder mode” on my osteosarcoma

In November 2022, I was 43 years old, healthy, active, and the founding CEO of the publicly traded tech company GitLab.

What are The CheckPoints movin’ and groovin’ to this summer?
Join the journal club with the best bops: We asked SITC’s 13-piece band of medical musicians for the top papers and songs of the summer

Physician-scientists by day, a funk-loving musical troupe by night. You may have seen The CheckPoints—a 13 member cover band with a three-piece brass section and Jim Allison on harmonica—movin’, groovin’, and gettin’ down as a mainstay closing act at ASCO, AACR, or the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer annual meetings.

August 14, 2026

Vol.52 No.32

By Sara Willa Ernst and Paul Goldberg

Book Review Guest Editorial

From the desk of Kimryn Rathmell: What to read before these beautiful days slip away
My summer reading challenged me to see people, purpose, and complexity in a new way

One of the great pleasures of summer is having more time to read.

August 14, 2026

Vol.52 No.32

By W. Kimryn Rathmell

Guest Editorial

The defining question of the next decade is not how many drug candidates can be generated, but who decides which ones move forward, and why
Drug development must convene a forum for candid, cross-sector discussion

At the 2026 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago, results from the phase III HARMONi-6 trial were presented at the plenary session and published simultaneously in The Lancet. The HARMONi-6 trial tested a novel bispecific antibody that engages PD-1 and VEGF (ivonescimab), given with platinum-doublet chemotherapy to patients with previously untreated advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer.

August 14, 2026

Vol.52 No.32

By Richard L. Schilsky, H. Kim Lyerly, Thomas R. Fleming and Renzo Canetta

An oncologist’s perspective on measuring success in the clinic

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

Raja Flores says oncology is loose with staging jargon, and now “it’s confusing my patients.”

I grew up unhoused. Now, with support from ACS, I am an MD-PhD student focused on oncology
My mother instilled in me: “Never become a product of your circumstances.”

From “default dead” to living the future of cancer care
As founding CEO of GitLab, I went “founder mode” on my osteosarcoma

What are The CheckPoints movin’ and groovin’ to this summer?
Join the journal club with the best bops: We asked SITC’s 13-piece band of medical musicians for the top papers and songs of the summer

From the desk of Kimryn Rathmell: What to read before these beautiful days slip away
My summer reading challenged me to see people, purpose, and complexity in a new way

The defining question of the next decade is not how many drug candidates can be generated, but who decides which ones move forward, and why
Drug development must convene a forum for candid, cross-sector discussion

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An oncologist’s perspective on measuring success in the clinic

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

Raja Flores says oncology is loose with staging jargon, and now “it’s confusing my patients.”

I grew up unhoused. Now, with support from ACS, I am an MD-PhD student focused on oncologyMy mother instilled in me: “Never become a product of your circumstances.”

From “default dead” to living the future of cancer careAs founding CEO of GitLab, I went “founder mode” on my osteosarcoma

What are The CheckPoints movin’ and groovin’ to this summer?Join the journal club with the best bops: We asked SITC’s 13-piece band of medical musicians for the top papers and songs of the summer

From the desk of Kimryn Rathmell: What to read before these beautiful days slip awayMy summer reading challenged me to see people, purpose, and complexity in a new way

The defining question of the next decade is not how many drug candidates can be generated, but who decides which ones move forward, and whyDrug development must convene a forum for candid, cross-sector discussion

Never miss an issue!

Login

I grew up unhoused. Now, with support from ACS, I am an MD-PhD student focused on oncology
My mother instilled in me: “Never become a product of your circumstances.”

From “default dead” to living the future of cancer care
As founding CEO of GitLab, I went “founder mode” on my osteosarcoma

What are The CheckPoints movin’ and groovin’ to this summer?
Join the journal club with the best bops: We asked SITC’s 13-piece band of medical musicians for the top papers and songs of the summer

From the desk of Kimryn Rathmell: What to read before these beautiful days slip away
My summer reading challenged me to see people, purpose, and complexity in a new way

The defining question of the next decade is not how many drug candidates can be generated, but who decides which ones move forward, and why
Drug development must convene a forum for candid, cross-sector discussion